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Brandon King

The Quest for the Temple Key

Synopsis

A young girl. A diabolical gargoyle. A sacrifice to save the world. A smart young girl is unwillingly thrust into a frantic quest to save mysterious people and bizarre creatures from a deadly foe, determined to destroy everything--and everyone--she cares about. Thirteen-year-old Danielle had never thought of herself as adventurous until, alone, she must face two enormous gargoyles, Ercen and Kimar, and decide whether she trusts them. Was she kidnapped--as all the evidence indicates--or rescued from doom, like they say? Can she believe their assertion that she has a power to save the entire world from a diabolical gargoyle and his minions? How can a simple girl break the monstrous power of the key to the enemy's ghastly temple, crafted from the very soul of a broken, elderly woman? Danielle's epic journey will captivate readers as she confronts powerful threats, and finds perplexing friends along her dangerous path. With the help of a gargoyle names Lohxnahr, Danielle struggles against forces beyond her worst terrors. She must dig deep to find enough courage and resilience to challenge the rogue gargoyle commander of the renegade army, bent on seizing control of the human race. Full of wonder, suspense and adventure, this novel is a fun, page-turning fantasy that also asks serious questions about the true meaning of love, faith and friendship.

Author Biography

Brandon King is an award-winning author living in SW Idaho, not far from epic rock formations that find their way into his stories. While his stories are straight-up fantasy he, like favorite authors J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, infuses his novels with allegory for perceptive readers.
He intends The Gargoyle Chronicles to be a seven book series. With Books 1 and 2 published, and Books 3-5 nearing completion, his fans have many characters—human and otherwise—to love. Or fear.

Author Insight

Desperate Actions

How do handle stress? Have you ever had a time when you had to deal with something so frightening that the hit of adrenaline makes your body feel odd, like it does not work right? In writer's parlance, your writing improves the more you "show, don't tell." In other words, try to get your reader to feel like they're in the character's shoes. That's always my aim. So, when my characters face their worst fears, my goal is that you get a small hit of the adrenaline my characters are feeling.

Book Excerpt

The Quest for the Temple Key

“OK, let me see if I’m getting this,” Peter said, frustration in his voice. “We were attacked…here, even though you have strong defenses around the Ten Pinnacles, because Kahrnahrgx and his followers are desperate.” He glared at Kimar, struggling hard with the impulse to blame someone for what happened to Freida.

“Yes,” Kimar answered.

“Well, it seems not so desperate as incredibly bold!” he said, beginning to engage his mind over his shaken emotions. “And your sentries, or guards, or whatever you call them, only became aware of the attack moments before it took place, because the enemy found a way to hide plans of his attack somehow.”

“Yes,” Kimar said again.

“And the reason for the attack was to capture…Danielle,” Peter continued, his voice catching at his daughter’s name. “But they took Freida, at great cost to their troops, because they’re convinced that Freida, not Danielle, is the Chosen One.”

“Given that Danielle was not here at the time of the attack, but with Lohxnahr and Zarentil, there was no question that they would take the one human female child they found,” the great gargoyle explained.

“So, why can’t we just keep Danielle up in Zarentil’s cavern until this all blows over?” Amy asked tensely.

“Because this will not blow over,” Kimar replied calmly. “The advance team of Kahrnahrgx sensed the presence of Danielle in the valley below the Ten Pinnacles. But because they were presented with a human female girl, especially when they have already had Freida captive for a time, they took the only human girl they found. But that doesn’t mean that they would not eventually sense and find Danielle, even if she were sheltered within Zarentil’s Peak.”

“Mom!” Danielle interrupted, so agitated she stood with clenched fists. “Dad, this is pointless. We need to go after them! There is only one way to end this. We need to go and save Freida. I can’t tell you why, and this probably sounds stupid and obvious, but I don’t think we have a lot of time. I feel there’s something different about her capture than mine…something even more dangerous. Please!”